OK. So getting to L.A. was kind of a mess. Connecting flight from Vegas was delayed, and rain in L.A. (first rain in ~3 weeks) kept us in the air for longer than anticipated. In turn, getting to Johnno's apartment in Beverly Hills was also a thankless task. Of course, before leaving the airport, I run into Cameron Goodman, Georgetown alum and budding actress - who insisted I take a Super Shuttle rather than a cab to BH (my abbreviation, not hers). This ultimately was the right call (15 bucks vs. ~50), but traffic was a disaster (in LA? shocking) and I ultimately didn't get to Johnno's until around 6:30. This would've been fine, had we not already bought tickets (~$60) for the NBA Rookie vs. Sophomore challenge - the first event of NBA All-Star weekend, which started at 6.
In spite of advice otherwise from Johnno's friends, we decided to still hurry to the Staples Center and catch the 2nd half. Oddly enough, traffic was still bad! Finally, we arrived at Staples with ~6 minutes left in the game. We decided to try to sneak our way into better seats than our nosebleed tickets afforded us, and our gamble paid off. We ended up sitting about 12-15 rows from the court, and catching the end of a surprisingly close game (rookies won 146-140, punctuated by a game-clinching dunk by John Wall). Despite the relentless chants by the youth-dominated crowd of "We want Blake (griffin)!" the rookie sensation had already seen the end of his playing time. Our other small victory was successfully redeeming the $15 concession vouchers that came with our tickets as the last available concession stand was closing - $60 hot dog and soda?? Don't mind if I do!
After $40 cab back to BH, we decided to hit up the blistering BH nightlife. For those unaware, this means (at least to my neophyte LA friends) a pair of sushi/sake bars, and 2 hotel bars situated in/about the Peninsula Hotel. We hit up Sidebar, one of the hotel bars, where Johnno shamelessly flirted with the moderately (at best, sorry bro) attractive bartender. At least we caught a glimpse of Pat Riley and Michael Jordan, among the NBA personalities staying at the hotel. My worst defeat came at the hands of my stomach - once we decided to head home at ~2am, we quickly found out that "late-night food" is something that doesn't really exist in Beverly Hills. Even Domino's closed before 2am, and I was forced to eat a ~weeks-old Veggie Pocket from Johnno's fridge - I mean, c'mon L.A., grow up.
In spite of advice otherwise from Johnno's friends, we decided to still hurry to the Staples Center and catch the 2nd half. Oddly enough, traffic was still bad! Finally, we arrived at Staples with ~6 minutes left in the game. We decided to try to sneak our way into better seats than our nosebleed tickets afforded us, and our gamble paid off. We ended up sitting about 12-15 rows from the court, and catching the end of a surprisingly close game (rookies won 146-140, punctuated by a game-clinching dunk by John Wall). Despite the relentless chants by the youth-dominated crowd of "We want Blake (griffin)!" the rookie sensation had already seen the end of his playing time. Our other small victory was successfully redeeming the $15 concession vouchers that came with our tickets as the last available concession stand was closing - $60 hot dog and soda?? Don't mind if I do!
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